President Julius Maada Bio has called for urgent international action to support survivors of sexual violence in conflict and the children born as a result of such atrocities. He delivered the message during a High-Level Event on Pregnancy, Children Born, and Sexual Violence in Conflict.

He praised the efforts of Sierra Leone’s First Lady, Fatima Maada Bio, and the UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, for convening the dialogue. Bio described the issue as a “painful reality” faced by women and girls, who often endure stigma, while their children struggle for dignity and recognition.

Drawing from Sierra Leone’s own civil war, he recalled that around 20,000 children were born of rape, with young girls forced into sexual slavery. “These memories compel us to act,” he said.

Bio highlighted Sierra Leone’s national response, including the declaration of sexual and gender-based violence as a national emergency, the creation of a Sexual Offences Court, expansion of One-Stop Centres, and laws to protect girls from early marriage, supported by the free quality education program.

Internationally, Sierra Leone has advanced the Women, Peace, and Security agenda, co-sponsoring with Japan the first UN resolution on remedies for survivors, affirming their rights to justice, reparations, and rehabilitation.

President Bio endorsed global action to provide survivor-centred services, ensure nationality rights for children born of rape, support their integration into peacebuilding, and secure funding for reparations. Above all, he urged that survivors’ voices guide solutions.

“Our shared humanity requires us to act now,” he said. “We must build a world where no woman’s body is used as a battlefield, and where every child enjoys dignity, rights, and hope.”

The event also featured contributions from Sierra Leone’s First Lady, the First Lady of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Denise Nyakeru Tshisekedi, and UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador Isha Sesay, who presented the Global Declaration of Principles on the Rights of Children Born of Conflict-Related Rape.